A while back Microsoft VP Jim Allchin caused a rumpus by saying open source was in some way un-American, and then unsportingly declining to take up a challenge from Red Hat to debate the issue. There, aside from a public but debateless retort from Red Hat, it might have rested - were it not for Joe Barr.

Shut one eye, concentrate, and you can clearly see the process moving...

European competition commissioner Mario Monti has signalled that Microsoft's response so far to EU antitrust investigations has failed to head off action against the company. Instead, he's considering merging the two main current enquiries into one.